


You Can't Plant Me In Your Penthouse

by HDH0111



Series: All The Gold Sold At The End Of The Rainbow [4]
Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/F, Falling In Love, Friendship, Love, Love Confessions, Marriage, National Women's Soccer League, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Romantic Friendship, US Women's Soccer National Team, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love, Women's Professional Soccer
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:48:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26254429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HDH0111/pseuds/HDH0111
Summary: Happy couples aren't always what they seem but the wedding is just around the corner after the World Cup victory.Not all of our decisions are good, honest and faithful.Even the picture perfect Krieger-Harris family will face obstacles along the way.And God knows some roads are very long and bumpy...
Relationships: Ashlyn Harris/Ali Krieger
Series: All The Gold Sold At The End Of The Rainbow [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1525262
Comments: 4
Kudos: 7





	You Can't Plant Me In Your Penthouse

**Author's Note:**

> “So familiar and so right  
> You never left me since that one night  
> Though we try to say goodbye  
> Some things stay with you your whole life  
> For your whole life
> 
> Dancefloor dust  
> Never quite settles  
> Busy feet remember still  
> The way we moved so close in the darkness,  
> All the music, the magic, the thrill  
> I must have been so lost in the moment”

**Ashlyn’s POV**

It was the night of their glorious victory against the Netherlands in the World Cup Finale 2019. Ashlyn carried Ali’s and her own two gym bags to the bus, closely followed by her soon-to-be wife. The noise from the huge crowd outside was deafening. Both wore their sunglasses walking towards their bus, accompanied by the whole team. Megan Rapinoe was walking by Ash’s left side, smiling widely because of the triumph. Everyone was so happy and totally relieved that their hard work had paid off finally. When all of them had taken their respective seats, the pink-haired woman started yelling, “We got four stars…” and the whole team joined in at “on our shirt”. They sang and laughed during the whole bus ride to their hotel and their voices got louder with every song. As they arrived at their destination, they were greeted by many familiar faces, including most of their family and closest loved ones. This was going to be the best night of their lives and they were ready to live it to the fullest.

While the party was at its peak, everyone was heavily drunk and the music was too loud to hear your own thoughts, neither what the person right next to you was screaming in your ear. “I’m gonna get us another drink”, Harris yelled at the top of her lungs, knowing damn well that Alexandra wasn’t able to understand her at all. She nodded, gave her goalie fiancée a kiss on the cheek and turned to Alex Morgan who danced next to her. Meanwhile, Ashlyn squeezed her broad-shouldered body through the crowd, eventually reaching the outdoor bar. The staff were still busy, so it’d take a while to place an order.

Luckily, she saw Kyle Krieger who talked to Alex Morgan’s husband Servando only a few feet away. “How’s my bitch doing?”, she asked and hugged him for approximately the tenth time this night. He caringly kissed her forehead and replied, “Ashy, my second favorite soccer girl! I was just telling Serv about this cute waiter I saw in the lobby earlier. But forget about that. It’s your day!” They hugged once more and Kyle did his best not to cry happy tears which he’d done most of the day already. Then Ash went back to accomplish her mission and asked the barkeeper, “Can I get two more of your House Cocktails?” He gave her a smile and set up the glasses to mix it.

“Still partying hard?”, Christen Press asked as she passed the blonde goalkeeper. “Always. What about you and Tobin? Still on the hunt with?”, Ash wondered, referring to her three teammates who had had a lot of fun together in the locker room hours ago. She didn’t know what kind of fun specifically, but at least it got Christen drunk and that’s all that mattered. Chris used to be a great friend and was always supportive but mostly without any alcohol or other “dangerous substances”. It was refreshing to see her enjoying herself for once.

Press came a little closer to yell into Harris’ ear because of the loud music. “Don’t tell anybody but I think I’m a tiny bit drunk… possibly.” The smell of her hair after showering too long in the lockers gave Ashlyn a hard flashback of some crazy times. She instinctively smiled widely and that made the forward curious. “Are you laughing about me because I’m drunk? That’s not fair. I deserve some fun after all the hard work, too.” The brunette got a little peeved, but Ash prevented the situation from getting worse by shaking her head and replying, “No honey, I wasn’t laughing about you. Actually, I just remembered our weird times and it made me happy.” Press put her hand on Ashlyn’s shoulder and leaned in closer to breathe into her ear, “It’s hard to pinpoint what you’re referring to because we’ve had plenty of crazy times but I’m sure I’ll figure out what you meant once I get up tomorrow with a huge headache.”

This was the perfect moment to end their little chat and go back to her loving wife; the best time to draw the line between pre- and post-victory life. Suddenly time seemed to stand still, giving Harris just enough seconds to take a look around. So many familiar faces. Dahlkemper standing next to her favorite, really tall human Sam, talking happily. O’Hara standing a little too close to Captain Morgan all night with her husband Servando right next to them. Julie chilling with Tobin on a bench away from the noisy party because they’ve had their fair share of drunk idiots by now. Horan and Sonny busting all the moves in the middle of the dancefloor, having an amazing time as per usual. Everything felt genuine, without any dumbass coverups or second guesses. Even a blind man would be able to look behind the close dancing, chitchatting, private talking and all of the other obvious friendly overtures. _Wambach would hate this place…_

“You okay?”, Christen wondered just loud enough to bring Harris back to earth. “Yes, of course. I was just… you know, kinda lost in reverie.” The dark-haired woman nodded silently, seemingly understanding exactly what was going on in the victorious goalkeeper’s mind. _She always knows. That’s just her thing,_ Ashy thought to herself while metaphorically taking a stroll in the huge, brown eyes of her opposite. The forward noticed it and caringly put her hand on the blonde’s lower arm, sincerely asking, “Want to have a private chat about what’s going on in your mind or isn’t this the right time and place?” There wasn’t going to be the right time and place ever and Harris was fully aware of that. There never is. “No, let’s go somewhere more private and talk. No better time than right after our World Cup win.”

The two teammates went over to a quiet corner of the hotel terrace where nobody was able to eavesdrop on their conversation. They stood very close to each other because of the little space they had to hide in from the other party guests, making the slightly drunk Christen giggle. “Maybe it’s because I’ve enjoyed too much alcohol tonight, but I like being hammered, tightly squeezed in a tiny corner with you.” Ash laughed but had to put both of her hands on the wall behind Chris because she kept bouncing against the smaller player standing opposite of her. “Must be nice being as slender as you are. I can’t even breathe in here, skinny bitch”, the goalie grumbled. “It’s your muscular frame, honey. Turning all the girls’ heads comes with some disadvantages, I guess.”

Harris tried to ignore that very flattering comment because drunk Press usually says some things she will regret later. No need to push her even farther. “Alright, let’s talk…” Christen listened carefully with her eyes jumping from Ash’s eyes to her mouth every now and then. “…I was just wondering, because I’ll go and marry Ali in a few months, do you still think about our good old days together?” The brown-eyed forward looked her opposite in the eye, being dead serious, “yes, all the time. But it’s nerve-wrecking so I keep myself busy cleaning the messes Tobin makes.” _Whoops, that was the raw truth. Better choose the next questions wisely or I’ll have to live with answers I never wanted to hear._

“Does it trouble you that I’m getting married soon?” Press shook her head instantly. “No, it’s cute. I love you and Ali as a couple. Shipping Krieger-Harris all the way.” _Totally honest but I wouldn’t have expected anything else. Not in her current state._ Out of the blue, Press put her hand on Ashlyn’s chest with only the shirt keeping their skin apart. Harris continued, pretending to not be bothered, “Will you try to keep your distance from me romantically, once I’m married?” A very insecure expression came up on Press’ face. “I will try, definitely. Can’t promise that it’ll work all the time because we’re teammates and friends. We’ll be alright though, as always.” “You sure?”, Ash asked again, not totally convinced by her opposite’s words. They sounded honest but Harris didn’t feel it.

For a brief moment, they looked at each other quietly, unsure how to proceed. Neither of them looked away or dared to move an inch. Christen’s hand must’ve felt the accelerating heartbeat inside of Ash’s chest, when she said, “Happy World Cup victory, two-time WC Champion. See you tomorrow. Don’t party too hard.” Then she planted a gentle kiss on Harris’ cheek, pressing her soft skin against the goalkeeper’s a little longer than usual. It was nice feeling her warmth and knowing that her tender soul cared so much, like a guardian angel.

After their hug had ended, Press left without giving Ash another look. A little baffled, the heavily tattooed woman went back to the bar, passing a laughing Tobin who gave her a high-five, then continued talking to Julie Ertz. This time the barkeeper immediately mixed two cocktails and Ashlyn went over to her lovely fiancée. “Hey babe, thanks for getting us another drink”, Alexandra welcomed her back, took her drink and gave her a loving kiss on the mouth. Right now Ash felt sick from the previous encounter which made her heart feel kind of heavy. She took a long sip of the cherry-loaded cocktail, closed her eyes for a few seconds and then wrapped one arm around her future wife’s shoulders. “I love you, Ali”, she whispered into her ear, earning a passionate kiss and a softly spoken “I love you too, Ash”.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading through the first chapter of my Ash & Ali fanfic! I hope you liked it so far.  
> Please leave kudos, comments, subscriptions and every feedback you'd like.
> 
> If you'd like to dive deeper into the universe I'm building, please consider reading the series linked above!
> 
> Lots of love and please stay safe and healthy <3


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